1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to wireless telecommunications, and in particular to multimedia messaging services (MMS) and/or to short messaging services (SMS).
2. Background of Related Art
The world has been transformed by the emergence of electronic messaging. Initially, short messaging services (SMS) were developed to allow text messaging. Later, these text capabilities were expanded to include audio and images with multimedia messaging services (MMS).
Wireless Service Providers (carriers) currently install a Short Messaging Service Center (SMSC) between the Internet and their wireless network to support plain text short messaging (SMS) to subscriber handsets. To support MMS services, carriers also install a Multimedia Messaging Service Center (MMSC) between the Internet and their wireless network. Conventional MMSCs do not support SMS text messaging.
FIG. 7 depicts the current state of the art of an installation of an MMSC and an SMSC both serving a single subscriber but requiring two separate Internet addresses.
In particular, as shown in FIG. 7, an MMSC 702 is given a presence on the Internet 700, as is an SMSC 704. Each presence is required to have its own Universal Resource Locator (URL). Through these connections to the Internet, a message sender may direct a short message (e.g., a text message) to a supported subscriber 800 via the their carrier's servicing SMSC 704, or may direct a multimedia message (MMS) to the same subscriber 800 via their carrier's servicing MMSC 702 (provided that the subscriber's mobile device is capable of receiving MMS content). Therefore a person desiring to send a message to a subscriber with both SMS and MMS capability is required to remember two addresses for the same subscriber and to manually determine which address to use based on the content of the message they wish to send.
Thus, carriers providing Multimedia Messaging Services utilize an MMSC 702 to receive MMS messages for delivery to subscribers with MMS capability, and one or more SMSCs 704 to receive SMS messages for delivery to SMS subscribers (many of whom may also be MMS subscribers). To provide these multiple services (MMS and SMS), the carrier must use multiple domain names (one URL for the MMSC 702 to support Multimedia Messaging, and another URL for the SMSC 704 to support Short Message Service) for each subscriber 800 who desires both capabilities within a single carrier network.
For information relating to components of the MMS standard, reference is made to 3GPP TS 23.140 v6.5.0 Technical Specification—3rd Generation Partnership Project; Technical Specification Group Terminals; Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS); Functional description; Stage 2 (Release 6).
In order for an MMSC 702 and an SMSC 704 to both receive messages destined for the same handset 800, it is necessary for the MMSC 702 and the SMSC 704 to each be referenced by unique Internet domain names. This requires that when addressing a message, the sender must be aware of whether they are sending an SMS or an MMS message, and correspondingly which domain is appropriate through which to access the destination subscriber handset, based on the particular content of the message they are sending. Thus, the sender must remember two different Internet addresses for any particular addressee.
The present inventors have appreciated that the need to remember at least two different Internet addresses for the same destination subscriber has a high likelihood of causing confusion for message senders as to which domain to use for which message type, and perhaps even what specific message type they are sending. If a message is sent to an MMSC for a particular subscriber instead of to their SMSC for a plain text short message, or vice versa for a multimedia message, loss of the message will likely result, causing lost revenue to the wireless service provider (carrier), not to mention disappointed subscribers. Moreover, subscriber information, routing information and reporting mechanisms must be duplicated in two systems.
There is a need for techniques and architecture for SMS and MMS services which are simpler to implement from a sender's perspective, and which ensure maximum profitability from a carrier's perspective.